Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/07/30/law-enforcement-portal.html
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The Internet of Things will never help anyone. It will be used like every other technology now- to spy on the people who use it so they can be sold tailored ads.
The entire internet has evolved to become an ecosystem that exists merely to tailor ads to you.
Get this totalitarian shit out of my house, off my doorstep, and out of my fucking country.
The developers that make this possible can grab the hands of the marketing slime that enable this, and jump together, hand in hand, straight off a cliff, tied to the police that willingly sign up to abuse this.
Fuck you, Amazon. Fuck you.
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As my wife said “This seems like an incredibly bad idea!”. This sparked a discussion on whether we should finally cancel our Prime membership. I already run a PiHole at home with all the bells and whistles turned on to stop Amazon from snooping (and from the logs, snoop they do!). We decided we weren’t going to because we haven’t finished a couple of Amazon shows we like. It was really a coin flip though, I could get those shows elsewhere, but I would like to pay for content I like. We did make a pact that the next time Amazon does something really shitty like this, we will cancel.
Hear that Amazon? We pay for quality products we like, or we actively try and get away from your services when they start to seem draconian. I find it amazing that big companies like Amazon haven’t figured this out by now.
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Sooner of later, we’re going to find out that Palantir Technologies is involved in this, and the claim that no data can be accessed without the owner’s permission is totally wrong.
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They call it Law Enforcement Neighborhood Portal? Really?
They sure missed an open goal there. They could have called it Law Enforcement Neighbourhood Surveillance - much more appropriate.
“Hey, sarge, come see what I just caught on the LENS at Mrs McGyver’s place”
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Oh good, another horrible thing to read. I’m waiting until this is mandatory and used for Amazon’s machine learning to determine who’s about to do crimes so we can all go down Minority Report style.
But hey, I got a great deal on a game system on Prime Day and can get Whole Foods asparagus water delivered by drone in an hour so it’s totally worth it.
Excuse me whilst I make my sweet, sweet death come faster by eating Arby’s.
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Something, something, 1984 was supposed to be a cautionary tale something.
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In all fairness, the internet wouldn’t exist without ads unless you wanted to start paying a fee for it.
Ads are annoying, but I wouldn’t write off the entire internet given that I don’t have to wait in line at the RMV, I don’t have to go to the bank to pay bills, and I can find a doctor without flipping through the yellow pages.
I hate malls, Wal-Marts, Dollar Whatever, Target, etc. So when I need something stupid simple and cheap, I’ll go to Amazon. If I want something nice with high quality (shoes, clothes, books, etc) I’ll go to a local store and pay a few bucks more to keep them in business. Amazon is like a hammer: use it for the nails, but don’t expect it to be a screwdriver.
Speaking of acronyms… the Corporate Invisible Army has been relatively straightforward with their plans for your WiFi enabled dishwasher of the near-future
Is it really that bad to have a way for police to request footage that’s easier than knocking on every door?
I may be reading different words but I’m not seeing where this allows them carte blanc access to the footage - just a way to see who has a device and request footage. We generally expect police to try and get video from surrounding areas if there is a crime - in some cases - they are even championed by Boing Boing to catch killers (https://boingboing.net/2018/10/07/agcab.html)
This is relatively normal. The police do not need a warrant to request any sort of information or access. And if people consent to provide information and access that’s totally legal and fairly normal.
Otherwise I’m reasonably sure this is all kinds of illegal. Public employees promoting specific consumer products? And while Amazon can hand over lists of cameras, customers need to consent to that. Pretty sure they need to concent to specific requests not in blanket fashion. If they don’t the police need a warrant or subpoena to access that information. Traditionally from a liability standpoint, Amazon should resist even those court orders. Those ends of it are sketchy as fuck.
So Amazon lied to the Police… That’s a crime, or not…
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“Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary security deserve neither…” Ben Franklin
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This is an unregulated public surveillance network. It is far more likely to oppress you than help you. Straight up evil.
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The trade-off between security and ease of use is commonly encountered in the real world, and often causes friction between users and those responsible for maintaining security.
https://blog.infosanity.co.uk/2010/06/12/infosec-triads-securityfunctionalityease-of-use/
Baby steps. The only safe way to remove liberties from people is in tiny actions. Like boiling a frog.
IF this were being done in a way that couldn’t be abused, AND the ones in charge weren’t displaying a sickening level of corruption across the board THEN MAYBE it would be okay.
With the people that are in charge… it’s not going to be okay, if it moves forward.
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